9
JAMES LED SADIE into the house. It would have made a better impression had they gone through the front door rather than the garage, but Sadie didn’t seem to mind. Her compliments began to flow right away.
“I love this mud room. We have one too and I love that most of the homes in this area have them. They’re such a warm welcome after a long day, don’t you think?”
James hadn’t thought about the mud room at all other than it was the place where he tripped over the shoes Maddie kicked off after she came through the door. But seeing it through Sadie’s eyes, he could get a feel for what she was talking about. Painted a light yellow it did give off a sense of warmth.
“Maddie chose the paint color. She chose all the colors, come to think of it,” he said as they made their way into the kitchen that was just off the mud room.
A few years back, James had begun to see Tiffany’s handprint throughout the house still lingered. Maddie had only been ten when Tiffany died so he hadn’t wanted to change too much too quickly, but once Maddie began to have a strong interest in home design and décor, he told her she could come to him with any changes she wanted to make, and they would decide what was best and then do it together. Paint colors were the first thing. Initially, he’d been a bit nervous about having a teenage girl choose the colors for the house, but Maddie had a great eye and found neutrals with yellow and green and brown tones that brightened up the place. Her mother who had been drawn to darker, more dramatic tones, although Tiffany hadn’t been thrilled to be back in Nearlake anyway and didn’t find a house under 6,000 square feet worth fussing about.
The kitchen sat in the back of the house, large French doors opening from it out to a patio that looked over the lake. A small path led to the dock. The property was surrounded by huge fir trees, something James appreciated. It gave him a sense that they were tucked into their own private space, something he’d longed for during his years in the NFL. Something he was grateful he could give Maddie.
“Oh, my goodness,” Sadie said as she entered the kitchen. “This is breathtaking.” She moved through the room, her hand running along the white granite of the large island in the center of the kitchen.
Maddie had music playing, a country station with a song about a guy wondering how his evening would play out with a woman he was interested in. James glanced at Sadie.
He could relate.
The scent of cooked lasagna filled the air causing his stomach to growl.
Maddie set down a pan of lasagna on a hot pad on the counter, her hands tucked into bright red potholders. “This is my grandma’s recipe and my all-time favorite.” She took the potholders off her hands and set them down. A large salad bowl rested nearby. She poured dressing over the lettuce and vegetables and then tossed it all together with wooden salad tongs.
Sadie looked at James. “You cook, too?”
“Just this one dish,” he said, both hands held up.
“It’s true,” Maddie agreed. “Grandma taught him this one, but beyond that, he’s hopeless.”
“Hopeless feels like a bit of a stretch,” James argued. “I make a pretty good hamburger.”
Maddie stopped tossing the salad and looked as if she was thinking hard. “I’ll give you that. But that’s grilling. That’s not full-on cooking.”
James shook his head. He and Maddie could debate for days what was considered “real” cooking and what wasn’t, but he wasn’t going to drag Sadie into that. His head was still trying to wrap around the fact that she was here and had said yes to having dinner with them. A far cry from a date, but he was finding that he wanted any kind of time with her, and he would take what he could get.
He’d set the table for two but noticed another place setting. Maddie must have done that while they were still in the garage talking. It didn’t escape him that he had asked Sadie what kind of guy she thought he was, and she avoided the question by diverting their attention to the rocking chair.
Which was fine. Seeing her cheeks flush when he’d asked was enough for him. He’d rattled her in a good way and although painfully curious about what her answer might have been, he was a patient man. He’d find out soon enough what she thought of him, and hopefully that she was thinking of him as often as he was thinking about her.
Yet again, she’d thrown him off as well, stirring up feelings he hadn’t paid much attention to in recent years. He’d originally built the rocking chair with goal of having two chairs, one for him and one for Tiffany. When he’d finished the chair and shown it to her, he’d said he made it as a symbol of being with her forever, growing old together and rocking on the front porch as they watch kids and grandkids play in the yard.
She hadn’t found the idea quite as romantic as he had. Although she had said the chair was “cute” and having a couple on the porch would fit the motif of the house, she didn’t like thinking about getting old or being a grandmother.
That had been their last conversation about it. James put the chair in the garage, losing all motivation to build a second one.
Until now.
When Sadie had said he could build two for him and Maddie, it sounded nice, but Sadie was the one he could picture sitting there with him. A thought that brought both peace and turmoil to his gut. James had let himself think about what his brother had mentioned, that having a woman in his life could bring a lot of good. And it wasn’t tough to imagine that with Sadie around. A lot about that felt peaceful. The turmoil part came when he thought of all that could go wrong. His heart had been stomped on and left in the dust. Was he ready to risk trusting it to someone again? And anyone who came into his life also came into Maddie’s life. He had to consider that.
However, watching Sadie and Maddie talk about books and the dogs and HGTV as Maddie cut the lasagna and placed squares on plates, it wasn’t hard to see that Maddie might like the idea of having Sadie around just as much as he did.
They settled into seats at the table, the dogs resting on their beds in the family room. Maddie continued her conversation with Sadie as they did so, their voices, mixed with the music in the background, causing a sense of peace to settle over James. As much as he enjoyed time with his daughter, it was nice to have another person with them to share a meal. And not just any person.
Sadie.
His brother’s idea of a nice candlelit dinner popped into James’ head. Not a vision he wanted to entertain when Mark had first mentioned it, it now sounded like he something he’d like very much. A date with Sadie was sounding less and less intimidating.
He cut a piece of lasagna with his fork and brought it to his mouth. Every time he ate this meal, he thanked his mother for teaching him how to make it. The combination of flavors danced across his tongue. The tomato sauce rich with basil and oregano, the cheeses gooey and melted mixed in with the perfectly cooked noodles. He may not be able to make much else, but he could live the rest of his life off just this eal and be fine.
“Oh, my goodness. This is fantastic,” Sadie said after finishing her first bite.
“Grandma does it better, but dad’s is a pretty good second,” Maddie said then dished a bite into her mouth.
James made a face. “Thanks, kid. Way to burst my bubble.”
Maddie shrugged. “I’m just being honest. But Grandma should be the one that makes it best. It’s her recipe.”
James conceded with a shrug and took another bite.
“Well, I haven’t tasted your grandmother’s version, but I think this one is pretty amazing.” Sadie smiled at him as she dished more into her mouth.
The compliment was just what James needed to put air into his cooking confidence again. Not to mention him feeling as if the prettiest girl at school just told him he was awesome.
“Thank you.” He smiled at Sadie the turned his attention to his daughter who was happily cutting her lasagna into perfect bite-sized squares. She’d done it since the first time he’d made her this meal. “How was book organizing at the shop today?”
“It was so fun,” Maddie said as she put down her knife and fork. Easier for her to wave her hands around as she talked. “You would not believe some of the books that are in those stacks, Dad. One was published in 188. No joke.”
“I think there is one even older than that,” Sadie said.
James couldn’t help but notice the big smile on Sadie’s face as Maddie talked. He’d been right that they were similar. Not just about books but history, too. A pang of regret hit him as he thought about their teenage years. All that time he’s noticed her at school but never had the guts to talk to her. It sounded as silly in his head now as it was back then, him not being brave enough to befriend her. Unfortunately, the truth was that he was an idiotic kid who feared what would happen to his status at school if he had. He’d tried to be nice to everyone, make sure he wasn’t a total jerk to anybody. But he stayed tucked into his own crowd, Tiffany included, and sitting here with Sadie across the table from him, her presence alone bringing him a sense of contentment he hadn’t had in a long time – maybe ever—made his regret that much stronger.
“Maddie was a great help today. The collection of books is no joke. And she did a beautiful job finding places for them around the shop. She has a good eye for decorating,” Sadie said as she smiled at James and then Maddie.
Maddie’s face beamed from the compliment.
“And Kenny was there today,” Sadie said as she laid her fork down and leaned back in her chair.
“Kenny?” James asked.
“The boy who broke my window,” Sadie reminded him.
“Right.” James nodded.
“He was quite excited about Moira teaching him how to use the feather duster,” Sadie said with a laugh, the sound like music to James’ soul.
“He totally was,” Maddie agreed. “We just have to be sure he doesn’t dust near the books or the secret passage…” She stopped as her eyes met with Sadie’s.
James wasn’t entirely sure, but he could swear that Sadie had nudged Maddie under the table with her foot.
Maddie’s face went red. “Sadie, I am so sorry. Honestly. I didn’t mean to say anything.”
She covered her mouth with her fingers.
Sadie’s eyes grew wide as she stared at Maddie.
James put down his fork and leaned forward. It didn’t take the cop in him to know that something was going on between the two of them.
“Did you just say a secret passageway?” He looked at his daughter but could see Sadie out of the corner of his eye. “And you avoiding eye contact, Sadie, makes you look just as guilty, so I’ll get to you in a second,” he said with a finger pointed at her but his eyes never leaving Maddie’s.
Maddie looked at Sadie then back at James.
“Spill it, kid.” He was grateful when Sadie nodded in agreement.
“Sadie and I found a trapdoor in her shop. Well, I found it, but we opened it and I really wanted to go down there but Sadie said no, that you would be super mad. And I know she’s right. But then she didn’t want me to tell anyone and now I’ve gone and blown it and…”
When James asked her to spill it, he honestly thought he’d be met with hesitation. But Maddie’s verbal vomit was more than enough information for him to work with.
Maddie had stopped to take a breath while Sadie rubbed her forehead then folded her hands in her lap, awaiting his interrogation.
He turned his attention to Sadie. “Well, that’s quite a story.”
“I didn’t mean for her to keep anything from you. I would never ask her to do that. I was just concerned that if Kenny or Moira or anyone else knew, they would go down there, and I have no idea what it is or…” she shook her head.
“Okay, okay. You said secret passageway.” James’ brain was still taking in all his daughter had said. It seemed best to work from the top and go from there.
“Yes! It’s so totally exciting. Like something out of a mystery novel.”
His daughter had switched from contrite to animated in about two seconds. He knew she now believed he was in on the secret and therefore, the adventure would begin.
“We don’t know for sure it’s a secret passageway,” Sadie offered.
“What else could it be?” Maddie asked. “It’s a door hidden in the floor and when we opened it there was a staircase leading down underground.”
James looked to Sadie. “Seriously?”
She shrugged. “That’s all true.”
“And neither of you went down there, right?” James’ gut clenched at the thought of either of them being under a building and having it cave in or… God only knew what could be down there.
“Absolutely not,” Sadie said.
“No,” Maddie said, the disappointment in her voice evident.
James leaned back in his chair and took a deep breath. His appetite was now gone, his mind on all that his daughter and Sadie had just told him.
“I don’t remember my grandparents saying anything about it and I will talk to JoJo as soon as I can to see if she knows anything,” Sadie offered. “But until then, I want to keep this among us.”
“But then can we go down there?” Maddie asked.
Sadie wisely avoided the question. “There’s a lot of history to that building. It was built in the early 100’s and was originally the site for the local newspaper. Almost all of the buildings along Lakeside drive are original. My grandparents became tenants in the 160’s but I have never heard anyone talk about anything under the shop.”
James could tell Sadie was trying to be cautious about the whole situation but was just as curious as his daughter about what this possible secret passageway might be.
He had to admit, his curiosity was piqued as well. It wasn’t shocking to have a cellar beneath a structure like that, but the last thing he wanted was his daughter or Sadie crawling down there and getting hurt because they thought they were living in some adventure story.
“No one is going down here,” he said.
Maddie frowned.
“At least not until I can see it and get a handle on what this actually is we are dealing with.”
Maddie smiled again.
He shook his head. The teenage emotional roller coaster might be the death of him.
“Sadie will talk to her aunt and check the history of the building, but until then, no one even looks down that hole. Deal?”
They both said, “Deal” and nodded.
He believed them, but why did James feel like a Pandora’s box had just opened and he had no idea what was inside.
She nodded. “Lead the way.”